An immigration judge has ordered that Mahmoud Khalil, a pro-Palestinian activist with dual ties to Algeria and Syria, be deported after finding he misrepresented material facts on his green card application. Khalil, a former Columbia University graduate student who organized anti-Israel protests on campus, is now at the center of a heated legal and political battle that has drawn international attention.
Judge Jamee Comans issued the ruling on September 12, giving Khalil the option of deportation to Algeria or Syria. The judge said Khalil “willfully misrepresented” key information on his application, including undisclosed affiliations with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) and Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a group advocating for boycotts against Israel. Comans described this omission as a “lack of candor.”
Khalil was arrested at his Manhattan residence in March and placed into deportation proceedings as part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on foreign-born pro-Palestinian academics. He has not been charged with a crime, but prosecutors insisted his omissions on immigration paperwork constituted grounds for removal.
Khalil’s legal team quickly pushed back. In a letter to U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz of New Jersey, his attorneys argued that the deportation order is unlawful retaliation for Khalil’s political activism. They noted that Khalil is married to an American citizen and has a U.S.-born son, adding that he fears retaliation from Israel if sent abroad. Al Jazeera reported that Khalil himself expressed fear of being targeted in Algeria or Syria due to his outspoken activism.
While the New Jersey federal court has temporarily blocked Khalil’s deportation, his lawyers acknowledged that the road ahead is difficult. They have 30 days to appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals, but even if that fails, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals is unlikely to intervene. As they admitted in filings, the circuit court “almost never” grants stays of removal to noncitizens.
Khalil’s case highlights the growing collision between immigration law and political activism. Supporters claim his deportation is an attack on free expression and academic dissent. Critics counter that dishonesty on a green card application is a serious matter, and no activist — regardless of political views — should get a pass.
For now, Mahmoud Khalil remains in detention as appeals move forward, his future uncertain and his fate hanging between Algeria, Syria, and a prolonged legal fight in U.S. courts.
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